49ers-Bears

Vernon Davis got into with Bears defensive end Adewale Ogunleye before the game. Ogunleye was the one guy Davis praised when he said the 49ers were going to “destroy their front.” Davis and Ogunleye played nice during the coin toss. The Bears will be without Charles “Peanut” Tillman left cornerback, so it will be interesting to see if the 49ers pass or run. Scot McCloughan said on KNBR that the Bears might go after Alex Smith early, so expect a long pass in the first one or two drives.

Bears drive: The are the only team in the league not give up points on the opponent’s first first drive. And they just forced a three-and-out. They put good pressure on Jay Cutler all three downs, including a Parys Haralson hit on second down. The 49ers blitzed once.

49ers drive: Spectacular catch by rookie Michael Crabtree for about a 30-yard gain, it looked like he made the reception and the 49ers are reviewing it. McCloughan was right about the 49ers taking a shot early.

49ers drive cont: The 49ers didn’t get the call but they are throwing, and Alex Smith looks good, Vernon Davis just knocked a Bear LB out of the game. It ends being a frustrating drive. On a play Vernon Davis went off-sides, the Bears had a break in coverage and Josh Morgan was wide open in the corner of the end zone. Then on 3-and-7 from the 20, Smith had Morgan open on a crossing route and Frank Gore open in the middle of the field instead he stepped up in the pocket and got sacked and then Joe Nedney missed the field goal. More of the same for 49ers, bad mistakes dooming a promising drive.

Bears Drive: Great defense. The 49ers sent Michael Lewis on a safety blitz on 3rd-and-9 and Cutler had to throw early to tight end Greg Olsen for a minimal gain. The Bears are spreading out their tight end also, but the 49ers are on it.

49ers Drive: The 49ers can’t get any breaks, it looked like from up here that receiver Jason Hill dove for the first down, but they spotted him short. So far, Smith has been spot on with his passes, but the last drive was a 3 and out.

Bears Drive: Chicago doing exactly what the 49ers do, going a lot with a twin tight-end set, but the 49ers are defending it well, by sticking Michael Lewis on a spread out Olsen. The Bears got a big gain on the drive with a thresded thrwo from Cutler to Olson after Bears picked Patrick Willis on a blitz. Cutler does have some zip. Now they are finding some room for Olsen, this time in a gap in the 49ers 2-deep coverage on the sidelines. The 49ers were doing better just matching Lewis on Olsen in man coverage. The Bears are driving. End of the quarter.

Frustrating quarter for the 49ers, they should have had a TD, if not for the Vernon Davis off-sides. Now, the Bears are driving and they’re doing it with passes to Olsen, the 49ers need to change something.

Bears Drive Cont: Aubrayo Franklin just picked off Cutler on the goal line, I don’t know if it was a zone blitz, or if Franklin just got blocked into it. It looked like Franklin was reading Cutler’s eyes.Man, they are going to Olsen. On first down from the 30, Cutler locked on him exclusively by Tarell Brown had him in coverage and the pass was thrown out of bounds. Dashon Goldson didn’t wrap up and Matt Forte got 16 yards to the 14. The 49ers are not tackling, Shawntae Spencer missed a tackle on Earl Bennett to the 6.

49ers Drive: Patrick Willis has eight tackles already. The 49ers had a nice drive going particularly with screens, but a miscommunication led to an interception. Smith threw a go route on the outside and Crabtree looked as if he expected it on the inside. Crabtree was also late in recognizing the ball was coming his way. The YAC on that drive? 31 yards. BTW, Davis got caught for another false start, that’s four in the last six quarters.

Bears Drive: Who cares about the 37-yard gain the Bears had on 2-and-19? Tarell Brown took advantage of a slip by Devin Hester and an interception return that got them down to the 14-yard line. Brown knew what to do with it after the pick, maybe he should return punts.

49ers Drive: TOUCHDOWN Frank Gore. A quick trap up the middle and trio of fine blocks by a pulling David Baas, a seal block by tackle Adam Snyder and a tremendous down block by Davis. On the replay, he blocked his guy off the screen. 49ers 7-0. Nice moment with Gore celebrating with Davis on the sidelines.

Bears Drive: Disappointing that the 49ers allowed a field goal right before the half. Almost another pick of Cutler to start the drive., Spencer stepped in front of who’s not having a good game. On a screen to Matt Forte, Balmer was 12 yards downfield making the tackle, not bad from the former first-rounder. 7-3.

Quarter assessment: The 49ers were willing to trade a first rounder for Jay Cutler over the offseason, but when Denver asked for a second first-rounder, the 49ers pulled out. At for the first half, that was a very good decision. Cutler is talented but he’s not a leader and he really benefitted from Denvers great pass protection. He would have been a disaster as a 49er. Takeo Spikes has a hamstring pull and is out for the rest of the game. The Bears, I think, are losing this game so far. The 49ers aren’t winning it. New stream for the second half.